Paper Crown
by Mecha Rush
Summary: Izaya had falsely announced that Delic was the heir to the throne, and Delic and Hibiya knew exactly why. Delic was to become a target for the people creating a rebellion due to the insane king's rule. The golden-eyed boy had thrown a fit, but Delic was okay. It was his life for Hibiya's. And he was perfectly okay with that. Because... he knew. He knew what Hibiya did not know.


**AN: DISCLAIMER. AUTHOR OWNS NOTHING BUT THE STORY. **

This is sort of an after story for _**Promise**_, I guess.

Basically, _**Promise **_has a bunch of potential endings, which I'm pretty solid on but miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight change depending on what I feel like when I write it.

The question is, will I ever finish it. I certainly hope so.

This after story is based on the ending that the Orihara Clan won the war, and uh... nothing else, I don't think.

It's a little rushed, in my opinion. But yeah.

Whether that'll actually happen in the main story or not, you may have to wait quite a while to figure that one out. :d

**EDIT: **Forgot to say—

******Don't scroll a lot at once—this is an emotional piece if anything, and doing that will sort of spoil it. Read it slowly and scroll a little at a time ****(literally line by line)**, especially at the breaks.

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"He's over there!"

"Get him!"

"Listen to me, you hear?! We can't lose him no matter what!"

The magenta-eyed man tsked, not slowing his pace as he sharply turned a corner.

"Wah!" exclaimed the boy at the sudden tug on his arm, his golden eyes wild and frantic. His free hand clutched fiercely at the wobbling crown on his head, in danger of falling off. "You insolent fool! Stop this madness immediately!"

Delic, however, did not listen to the little man behind him as he continued to run through various passages in the castle, trying desperately to lose the angry mob that was after them.

Every turn held more angry people than the last. The two were trapped inside the castle, and Delic knew it. There was no way the two would make it out alive.

But he did not stop running, his magenta eyes searching frantically for somewhere to hide.

Delic had never believed in a god; but he never stopped praying as he dragged the raven behind him, desperate for any shard of hope.

「_Let me save him._」

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Two decades ago, the war between the Heiwajima and the Orihara ended in the latter clan's victory. Orihara Izaya took reign of the entire land, no area out of his grasp. All descendants of the Heiwajima's old leader and Delic's father, Heiwajima Tsugaru, were ordered to complete slavery to one Orihara descendant.

After his undoubted victory, Izaya began to look for a successor. According to him, he had more "interesting" things to do than "clean after a country".

Orihara Psyche, originally the second heir to the clan's throne, was blind and therefore seen as "unfit". He wasn't interested in ruling anyway.

Orihara Hachimenroppi, originally the third heir to the clan's throne, was a little morbid and according to Izaya, "too out of whack" to reign. He had no interest, either.

Then came Orihara Hibiya, who nobody knew and who Izaya claimed was his nephew. Hibiya had been sick and weak since birth, but had the pride and intelligence that Izaya liked.

Although a secret, Orihara Hibiya was the next heir to Izaya's throne—and it had been Delic's duty since the beginning to protect him.

Delic still remembered the first time he had met Hibiya.

From the day he could understand words, the blonde boy had been told about how his life was going to be controlled by a member of the Orihara; and he hated that. Of course, he had been young, but still he had understood that that meant he couldn't go outside to play or be with his dad anymore, and that was enough to upset Delic. He had been raised without a mother or any knowledge of her, therefore when Tsugaru had to leave his son to tend to Izaya's callings, it didn't help Delic's image of the Orihara's. So when the blonde heard that his master had been born, he was determined to ignore his duties and run away to help his dad instead.

But when his magenta eyes first laid sight on the frail but beautiful baby, all his previous thoughts left him. From that day on, the two boys grew up together, side by side. Everywhere Hibiya went Delic followed, like he was supposed to, but it was also the other way around. They were always seen with each other, happier than the rest.

Delic protected the raven-haired boy fiercely, his brute strength and daily teachings from his father working together hand-in-hand. But since Hibiya hadn't been allowed out since he was young, there was not much physical harm to protect him from. So, that wasn't at all what Delic did, as his duty was.

The older boy had taught the baby to walk and talk.

He had read to him various books, and had played a variety of games together.

They had crafted crowns and capes for the baby that would become king in the future.

Delic had told Hibiya about the world outside the castle, and how he would take the young boy around the land he would rule.

When the raven shook at night, terrified of the thunder and lightning outside, Delic had told funny stories to make him laugh and forget his fear.

When golden eyes held tears after being scolded, the blonde's soft hands had wiped them away.

When Hibiya was ill and bedridden, Delic had spent sleepless nights to nurse him back to health.

When the country's instability required the declaration of a heir, Delic dyed his blonde locks black and said his magenta's eyes were a "birth defect" like Orihara Psyche's, and accepted the royal announcement to say that he was the official heir—knowing that it wasn't true.

Hibiya and Delic knew the true purpose behind Izaya's false declaration.

Delic was to become a target for the people creating a rebellion due to the insane king's rule.

The golden-eyed boy had thrown a fit, but Delic was okay.

It was his life for Hibiya's.

And he was perfectly okay with that.

Because... he knew.

He knew what Hibiya did not know.

And it seemed that today, he would truly pay the price that had been asked for.

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Delic turned another sharp corner and ran down a flight of stairs, into the servant's area.

"Stop! I said stop, you fool! You imbecile! Stop!" Hibiya yelled.

Delic scoffed. "Sorry for not listening, your majesty."

Without looking, Hibiya knew Delic had that crooked smile he always did plastered on his face, and Delic knew that Hibiya had that slight pout he did when he got irritated.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Delic immediately locked and bolted the door, throwing tables and beds in front of the one entryway.

Hibiya was exhausted, not used to the exercise. As he breathed heavily, his golden eyes followed the older man in the room, who was now at the back, frantically searching the wall.

When he had finally caught his breath, he moved towards the door again, and shoved at the tables and beds. They wouldn't budge.

"Stupid—blonde—brute," Hibiya muttered under his breath as he pushed. The furniture wouldn't budge, but nobody, _nobody_ tested Orihara Hibiya's will. Who did this insolent fool think he was, forcing him to do such a... a... a... _disgraceful_ thing as... as... running—

"What are you doing?"

Hibiya turned around at the question, and his golden eyes glared at the man now standing behind him. "Going... to take b—back... my honor... and... m—meet my... e—end... with pride, you _imbecile_. What... does... it l—...look like I'm doing?"

The two ravens stared each other down, the seconds ticking away on the clock.

Then Delic laughed.

Hibiya stared at him, incredulous. "You're... _laughing_? There's b—been a rebellion, the... castle walls have... been penetrated, thousands are d—dead and we... may be next, _and you're laughing_?!"

The magenta-eyed man ran his hand through his hair, an old habit of his. "Sorry, I was just—"

Delic stopped as he heard the angry cries coming closer once more.

Quickly, he grabbed the smaller man's wrist and dragged him to the back of the room, despite the complaints and fighting. There, beside the bed that had been shoved over, was a small hole where specific stone bricks had been moved. Delic grabbed a bed sheet and tied it around Hibiya's neck, and reached up to remove his crown.

"_What do you think you're doing_?!" Hibiya hissed, flinching away.

"Listen," Delic said, grabbing hold of the fabric in order to prevent the young man from escaping his reach. "That path leads to the forest. It's going to be dark, but all you have to do is go straight and take a right at the first turn. Keep your hand on the right wall. When you get out, find the river. Follow the river, opposite of the direction it flows, and you'll find yourself in a small village that's not owned by any royalty. Don't say who you are. Use a fake name. The people there are friendly; say you're an orphan, and they'll help you for sure. Do you understand?"

Hibiya didn't answer. He stood still, his eyes wide and staring at the man in front of him. Delic started to panic at the silence, fear coating his expression.

"Hibiya—"

"You want me to run."

Delic hesitated. "... Yes."

The voices and shouts were at the door.

"... Hibiya?"

The said man moved back, shutting his emotions out of his face. "No."

The door and the furniture blocking it were shaking as the people outside tried to get in.

"Hibiya, you must—"

"No!" Hibiya exclaimed, his breath shaking in rage. "I am also a royal member of this household. Look! _Look_ at this crown that rests on my head! You _know_ more than anyone the meaning, the responsibilities, the _honor_; that this crown signifies. Yet you want me to do _what_? _Run_?! Run from a horde of arrogant imbeciles that believe they have _'seen the light'_? I, Orihara Hibiya running from the face of such impudence? _Have you gone mad_?! I would much rather face death than commit such a _cowardly_—"

Delic sealed Hibiya's lips with a desperate kiss, lean fingers tangling themselves in raven locks as the two men shared this moment of passion, as the world seemed to pause time for them.

When they parted, Hibiya found himself staring at the same crooked smile he had seen for years—but this time, it was softened and painted with a sorrow Hibiya could not fathom.

In his distraction, the young man had not noticed that his crown had been taken. With his free hand, Delic pulled some the bed sheet over Hibiya's head, grabbed something from his pocket and thrust it into Hibiya's hand.

"Delic... What—"

And then shoved him.

Hibiya fell through the hole, his body crying out in pain as he landed harshly on the dirt. The "hood" of his "cape" was covering his view, and when he had gotten it out the way, Delic was well on his way to sealing the entrance back into the room.

"Wait!" Hibiya cried desperately, pounding at the wall that Delic was recreating, but curse the brute's strength, nothing would budge. "Delic! Wait—"

He kept pounding at the growing wall, his view blurring as tears started to form.

"Delic!"

The said man was at the last stone brick.

"_Delic__!_"

Magenta pierced into gold.

"Wait! Delic, I—"

Delic whispered his last words as he sealed the hole, leaving Hibiya in the dark.

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Hibiya sat in the dark, hearing the muffled shouts as the angry shouts finally broke down the door.

Paralyzed with shock, Hibiya remained still.

He was still as the shouts came dangerously close.

He was still as the shouts died out.

He understood what that meant.

Hibiya refused to cry, although the tears were in danger of overflowing. He realized that he was still holding what Delic had shoved in his hand.

Trembling, the raven felt it. It was a folded piece of paper, with odd cuts. Hibiya wondered when Delic would have time to write a note—

「_Wait_.」

With shaking fingers, he carefully unfolded the "note", and ran his finger around the outer edges.

Even in the dark, the raven knew what it was.

This wasn't a note.

It was a paper crown.

It was the one of the many crowns Delic had made for him when they were younger, which he had thrown away when he had received what he believed was a real crown.

As Hibiya's resolution broke, tears overflowed from his golden eyes.

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Delic sealed the path.

Just as he whirled around and placed the crown on his head, the door gave way and the furniture toppled over. The angry citizens ran in, their stares accusing and unforgiving. He had nothing to fight with, and they were going to take him. Delic was just glad that his single prayer had been answered. It was a terrible trade; Delic felt like his life was such a cheap price for saving Hibiya's life. But it had been done.

It was his life for Hibiya's.

「_Every time Hibiya's golden eyes kept him in sight, Delic was delighted._」

And he was perfectly okay with that.

「_Every time raven locks brushed against his skin, his body tingled._」

Because... he knew.

「_Every time those pink lips spoke his name, his heart gave a funny jump._」

He knew what Hibiya did not know.

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Delic was to meet his end in a public execution.

Hibiya was careful to keep his face hidden as he stood in the crowd, right at the front. A man with a black mask covering his face dragged Delic by his tangled hair.

The fake raven was dirtied, bruised, and bleeding. Hibiya harshly bit down on his lip to stop himself from crying out.

The executor kicked the injured man to get up and walk, and then shoved him on his knees, Delic's neck open prey underneath a large blade. Then, going around to the front, he grabbed a handful of raven locks and pulled up, forcing magenta's eyes to look in front of him, showing him the young man he had sacrificed his life to save. If he was surprised, he hid it well.

"Any last words?" the masked man questioned.

There was a stir in the crowd.

"_Delic__,_" Hibiya hissed under his breath, taking advantage of the noise.

As gold pierced magenta, Hibiya tried to speak with his eyes what the stupid blonde had done.

It was Delic's life for his.

「_Every time Delic's magenta eyes followed him, Hibiya was delighted._」

And he would never be okay with that.

「_Every time hidden blonde locks brushed against his skin, his body tingled._」

Because... he knew.

「_Every time those pink lips spoke his name, his heart gave a funny jump._」

He knew what Delic did not know.

The whispering and noises died down.

"Well?"

To the crowd's surprise, Delic smiled.

To everyone else, it was a disturbing sign that perhaps their next leader would not have been any more sane than their old one, if they had not done anything. But to Hibiya, it was all too familiar. It was Delic's signature crooked smile, the softness and sorrow gone, the pure, original smile that held memories, joy, and a smudge of arrogance.

"I...

... I regret nothing."

Delic spoke firmly with his eyes glowing brightly, brave before Death; defiant to some, attempting reassurance to one.

The crowd grew angry at his words, becoming excited as the executor stood up to walk towards the lever.

Hibiya cried quietly, just before his world came crashing down in time with the blade.

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_Delic whispered his last words as he sealed the hole, leaving Hibiya in the dark_.

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「"_I love you."_」

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_Hibiya cried quietly, just before his world came crashing down in time with the blade._

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Inspiration by _Kagamine Len_'s **Servant Of Evil**.

DIDN'T WANT TO SAY THAT AT THE BEGINNING BECAUSE IT WOULD HAVE GIVEN AWAY THE ENDING TO THOSE WHO KNOW IT.

keke~

**Thanks for reading :3**


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